Recovering the initial conditions of our local Universe from NOG and PSCz catalogues

We apply the ztrace algorithm to the optical NOG and infrared PSC z galaxy catalogues to reconstruct the pattern of primordial fluctuations that have generated our local Universe. We check that the density fields traced by the two catalogues are well correlated, and consistent with a linear relation [either in δ or in  log (1 +δ)  ] with relative bias (of NOG with respect to PSC z )   b _rel= 1.1 ± 0.1  . The relative bias relation is used to fill the optical zone of avoidance at  | b | < 20°  using the PSC z galaxy density field.
We perform extensive testing on simulated galaxy catalogues to optimize the reconstruction. The quality of the reconstruction is predicted to be good at large scales, up to a limiting wavenumber   k _lim≃ 0.4 h Mpc⁻¹  beyond which all information is lost. We find that the improvement arising from the denser sampling of the optical catalogue is compensated by the uncertainties connected to the larger zone of avoidance.
The initial conditions reconstructed from the NOG catalogue are found (analogously to those from the PSC z ) to be consistent with a Gaussian paradigm. We use the reconstructions to produce sets of initial conditions ready to be used for constrained simulations of our local Universe.     

Mechanisms of riverbank failure along the Arno River,central Italy

Riverbanks along the Arno River have been investigated with the aims of de?ning the main mechanisms of failure and retreat, their spatial distribution, and their causes. Geomorphological aspects were investigated by a reconnaissance of riverbank processes, for a number (26) of representative sites. Laboratory and in situ tests were then performed on a selected number of riverbanks (15). Based on the material characteristics, six main typologies of riverbanks have been de?ned, with homogeneous ?ne‐grained and composite banks representing the most frequent types. Slab‐type failures are the most frequent mechanism observed on ?ne‐grained banks, while cantilever failures prevail on composite banks. The role of river stage and related pore water pressure distributions in triggering the main observed mechanisms of failure has been investigated using two different types of stability analysis. The ?rst was conducted for 15 riverbanks, using the limit equilibrium method and considering simpli?ed hypotheses for pore water pressure distribution (annulment of negative pore pressures in the portion of the bank between low water stage and peak stage). Stability conditions and predicted mechanisms of failure are shown to be in reasonably good agreement with ?eld observations. Three riverbanks, representative of the main alluvial reaches of the river, were then selected for a more detailed bank stability analysis, consisting of: (a) de?nition of characteristic hydrographs of the reach with different return periods; (b) modelling of saturated and unsaturated ?ow using ?nite element seepage analysis; and (c) stability analysis with the limit equilibrium method, by adopting pore water pressure values derived from the seepage analysis. The results are compared to those obtained from the previous simpli?ed analysis, and are used to investigate the different responses, in terms of stability, to different hydrological and riverbank conditions. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Ferrara hard X-ray facility for testing/calibrating hard X-ray focusing telescopes

We will report on the current configuration of the X-ray facility of the University of Ferrara recently used to perform reflectivity tests of mosaic crystals and to calibrate the experiment JEM–X aboard Integral. The facility is now located in the technological campus of the University of Ferrara in a new building (named LARIX laboratory= ̳LARge ̳Italian ̳X-ray facility) that includes a tunnel 100 m long with, on the sides, two large experimental rooms. The facility is being improved for determining the optical axis of mosaic crystals in Laue configuration, for calibrating Laue lenses and hard X-ray mirror prototypes.     

Modeling the effects of the variability of temperature-related dynamic viscosity on the thermal-affected zone of groundwater heat-pump systems

Thermal perturbation in the subsurface produced in an open-loop groundwater heat pump (GWHP) plant is a complex transport phenomenon affected by several factors, including the exploited aquifer’s hydrogeological and thermal characteristics, well construction features, and the temporal dynamics of the plant’s groundwater abstraction and reinjection system. Hydraulic conductivity has a major influence on heat transport because plume propagation, which occurs primarily through advection, tends to degrade following conductive heat transport and convection within moving water. Hydraulic conductivity is, in turn, influenced by water reinjection because the dynamic viscosity of groundwater varies with temperature. This paper reports on a computational analysis conducted using FEFLOW software to quantify how the thermal-affected zone (TAZ) is influenced by the variation in dynamic viscosity due to reinjected groundwater in a well-doublet scheme. The modeling results demonstrate non-negligible groundwater dynamic-viscosity variation that affects thermal plume propagation in the aquifer. This influence on TAZ calculation was enhanced for aquifers with high intrinsic permeability and/or substantial temperature differences between abstracted and post-heat-pump-reinjected groundwater.

     

On estimating frequency-magnitude relations from heterogeneous catalogs

The paper studies the effect of magnitude errors on heterogeneous catalogs, by applying the apparent magnitude theory (seeTinti andMulargia, 1985a), which proves to be the most natural and rigorous approach to the problem. Heterogeneities in seismic catalogs are due to a number of various sources and affect both instrumental as well as noninstrumental earthquake compilations.The most frequent basis of heterogeneity is certainly that the recent instrumental records are to be combined with the historic and prehistoric event listings to secure a time coverage, considerably longer than the recurrence time of the major earthquakes. Therefore the case which attracts the greatest attention in the present analysis is that of a catalog consisting of a subset of higher quality data, generallyS ₁, spanning the interval T ₁ (the instrumental catalog), and of a second subset of more uncertain magnitude determination, generallyS ₂, covering a vastly longer interval T ₂ (the historic and/or the geologic catalog). The magnitude threshold of the subcatalogS ₁ is supposedly smaller than that ofS ₂, which, as we will see, is one of the major causes of discrepancy between the apparent magnitude and the true magnitude distributions. We will further suppose that true magnitude occurrences conform to theGutenberg-Richter (GR) law, because the assumption simplified the analysis without reducing the relevancy of our findings.The main results are: 1) the apparent occurrence rate exceeds the true occurrence rate from a certain magnitude onward, saym _GR; 2) the apparent occurrence rate shows two distinct GR regimes separated by an intermediate transition region. The offset between the two regimes is the essential outcome ofS ₁ being heterogeneous with respect toS ₂. The most important consequences of this study are that: 1) it provides a basis to infer the parameters of the true magnitude distribution, by correcting the bias deriving from heterogeneous magnitude errors; 2) it demonstrates that the double GR decay, that several authors have taken as the incontestable proof of the failure of the GR law and of the experimental evidence of the characteristic earthquake theory, is instead perfectly consistent with a GR-type seismicity.     

Benthic fluxes of mercury species in a lagoon environment (Grado Lagoon,Northern Adriatic Sea,Italy)

The role of the major biogeochemical processes in Hg cycling at the sediment–water interface was investigated in the Grado Lagoon (Northern Adriatic Sea). This wetland system has been extensively contaminated from the Idrija Hg Mine (Slovenia) through the Isonzo River suspended load carried by tidal fluxes. Three approaches were used to study the sediment–water exchange of total Hg (THg), methylmercury (MeHg), reactive Hg (RHg) and dissolved gaseous Hg (DGHg): (1) estimation of diffusive fluxes from porewater and overlying water concentrations, (2) measurements of benthic fluxes using a deployed light benthic chamber in situ and (3) measurements of benthic fluxes during oxic–anoxic transition with a laboratory incubation experiment. The THg solid phase, ranging between 9.5 and 14.4 μg g⁻¹, showed slight variability with depth and time. Conversely, MeHg contents were highest (up to 21.9 ng g⁻¹) at the surface; they tended to decrease to nearly zero concentration with depth, thus suggesting that MeHg production and accumulation occur predominantly just below the sediment–water interface. Porewater MeHg concentrations (0.9–7.9 ng L⁻¹, 0.15–15% of THg) varied seasonally; higher contents were observed in the warmer period. The MeHg diffusive fluxes (up to 17 ng m⁻² day⁻¹) were similar to those in the nearby Gulf of Trieste [Covelli, S., Horvat, M., Faganeli, J., Brambati, A., 1999. Porewater distribution and benthic flux of mercury and methylmercury in the Gulf of Trieste (Northern Adriatic Sea). Estuar. Coast. Shelf Sci. 48, 415–428], although the lagoon sediments contained four-fold higher THg concentrations. Conversely, the THg diffusive fluxes in the lagoon (up to 110 ng m⁻² day⁻¹) were one- to two-fold higher than those previously estimated for the Gulf of Trieste. The diurnal MeHg benthic fluxes were highest in summer at both sites (41,000 and 33,000 ng m⁻² day⁻¹ at the fishfarm and in the open lagoon, respectively), thus indicating the influence of temperature on microbial processes. The diurnal variations of dissolved THg and especially MeHg were positively correlated with O₂ and inversely with DIC, suggesting an important influence of benthic photosynthetic activities on lagoon benthic Hg cycling, possibly through the production of organic matter promptly available for methylation. The results from the dark chamber incubated in the laboratory showed that the regeneration of dissolved THg was slightly affected by the oxic–anoxic transition. Conversely, the benthic flux of MeHg was up to 15-fold higher in sediments overlain by O₂ depleted waters. In the anoxic phase, the MeHg fluxes proceeded in parallel with Fe fluxes and the methylated form reached approximately 100% of dissolved THg. The MeHg is mostly released into overlying water (mean recycling efficiency of 89%) until the occurrence of sulphide inhibition, due to scavenging of the available Hg substrate for methylation. The results suggest that sediments in the Grado Lagoon, especially during anoxic events, should be considered as a primary source of MeHg for the water column.     

Syn-thrust deformation across a transverse zone: the Grem–Vedra fault system (central Southern Alps, N Italy)

The lateral continuity of the E?CW trending thrust sheets developed within the Lower to Middle Triassic cover of the central Southern Alps (Orobic belt) is disturbed by the occurrence of several N?CS trending transverse zones, such as the poorly known Grem?CVedra Transverse Zone (GVTZ). The GVTZ developed during the emplacement of the up to six S-verging thrust sheets consisting of Lower to Middle Triassic units, occurring immediately south of the Orobic Anticlines. The transverse zone, active during thrust emplacement related to the early Alpine compressions which pre-date the Adamello intrusion, includes three major vertical shear zones, the Grem, Pezzel and Zuccone faults. The major structure of the transverse zone is the dextral Grem fault, forming a deep lateral ramp between thrust sheets 3 and 5. A similar evolution also occurred along the Zuccone and Pezzel faults, which show a left-lateral displacement of syn-thrust folds. The Grem fault was later reactivated as an oblique tear fault during the emplacement of the Orobic Anticlines, due to back-thrusting along out-of-sequence thrust surfaces (Clusone fault). Transpressional deformations along the fault zone are recorded by the rotation of major syn-thrust folds, which also suggest a horizontal offset close to 0.5?km. Records of the first stage of evolution of the Grem fault are better preserved along its northern segment, and structural relationships suggest that it propagated southward and downward in the growing thrust stack. The study of the meso and megascopic structures developed along the GVTZ constrains the evolution of the transverse zone, illustrating the complex deformational phenomena occurring in a transpressional regime. The GVTZ probably reflects the existence of pre-existing tectonic lineaments with a similar orientation. Evidence of pre-existing structures are not preserved in the exposed units, nevertheless the N?CS extensional fault systems that characterize the Norian to Jurassic rifting history of the Lombardian basin are valid candidates.     

Global photometric properties of Asteroid (4) Vesta observed with Dawn Framing Camera

Dawn spacecraft orbited Vesta for more than one year and collected a huge volume of multispectral, high-resolution data in the visible wavelengths with the Framing Camera. We present a detailed disk-integrated and disk-resolved photometric analysis using the Framing Camera images with the Minnaert model and the Hapke model, and report our results about the global photometric properties of Vesta. The photometric properties of Vesta show weak or no dependence on wavelengths, except for the albedo. At 554 nm, the global average geometric albedo of Vesta is 0.38 ± 0.04, and the Bond albedo range is 0.20 ± 0.02. The bolometric Bond albedo is 0.18 ± 0.01. The phase function of Vesta is similar to those of S-type asteroids. Vesta’s surface shows a single-peaked albedo distribution with a full-width-half-max ∼17% relative to the global average. This width is much smaller than the full range of albedos (from ∼0.55× to >2× global average) in localized bright and dark areas of a few tens of km in sizes, and is probably a consequence of significant regolith mixing on the global scale. Rheasilvia basin is ∼10% brighter than the global average. The phase reddening of Vesta measured from Dawn Framing Camera images is comparable or slightly stronger than that of Eros as measured by the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous mission, but weaker than previous measurements based on ground-based observations of Vesta and laboratory measurements of HED meteorites. The photometric behaviors of Vesta are best described by the Hapke model and the Akimov disk-function, when compared with the Minnaert model, Lommel–Seeliger model, and Lommel–Seeliger–Lambertian model. The traditional approach for photometric correction is validated for Vesta for >99% of its surface where reflectance is within ±30% of global average.     

First observations of the Na exosphere of Mercury with the high-resolution spectrograph of the 3.5M Telescopio Nazionale Galileo

Analysis of three spectra of the exosphere of Mercury in the Na-D lines are presented. Spectra were secured with the high-resolution spectrograph (SARG) of the 3.5 M Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG, located on the Roque de los Muchachos, Canaries) on the evenings of August 23 and 24, 2002. Spectra have resolution ; the slit length was 26.7”. The Na column abundances range from 4.3 to with the highest abundances being close to the illuminated limb. Our observations at true anomaly angles (TAA) from 171°to 174°show the traces of the emission lines to be strongly peaked at the illuminated limb, supportive of recent modeling that shows thermal desorption to be a strong factor in determining the distribution of Na about the planet.